Lullaby: Concrete Angel
by ElenaBolton20
Summary: Raising a baby by yourself is hard; it takes patience, love and great support. When his baby girl, Reilly, is born the love of his life is taken from him. Will he choose adoption? Or will he accept that he has to raise his daughter alone? xXTroy CentricXx


_Based from the song "Lullaby" by Nickelback, as well as "Concrete Angel" by Martina McBride. The plot to this story is mine, I own neither song and the characters to HSM. _

_Enjoy it. x_

* * *

_"Lullaby: Concrete Angel"_

**By: ElenaBolton19**

There are things that we don't expect to happen. Good things and bad things. "Ah!" She screeched, her hands clenching tightly over her belly as she is furiously wheeled into the hospital. Her eyes squeezed shut in agony, and her head thrown back on the small, white pillow that laid on the gurney. "Ah! Ah!"

"We got her get in the ER quickly!" Yelled one of the nurse's, "she's hemorroging!" The Doctors surrounding the gurney as it wheeled faster nodded and muttered their agreement.

"Ma'am," said the EMT who had brought her in. "Where's the father? Whose the father?"

"Hm...ah!" She screeched again, "Troy...Bolton-he's at work, my cell phone; call him..ah!" Another roll of painful contractions wracked through her body. The EMT nodded feverishly, going to the nurse's station as the patient was wheeled into the ER.

"I need to call Troy Bolton." The EMT said, the receptionist nodded and handed him the phone; which he promptly put to his ear and was about to dial the number when he immediately slammed it down. "I don't know his number!" He whipped his around left and right and left and right. Then he saw his answered prayer. "DANFORTH!" He ran to his curly haired colleague.

"Woah..what is it Becksworth?" Danforth asked with a smirk, his alight with humour. Becksworth gulped in a huge tug of air.

"I need...Troy...Bolton's number-"

"I have it. Why? What's wrong?" All humour and teasing gone. All professionalism taking its place.

"We got his wife...or girlfriend...in the ER with a high risk pregnancy gone into labour-"

"I'll call him. Just breathe...okay? Breathe."

"Okay."

"Becksworth?"

"Yeah?"

"You're not breathing."

\.

He was stocking the shelves at the local CostCo. And with everything in bulk, it took a little more than...three hours. And the fact that it's a huge store.

Everything was good for him. His girlfriend-soon to be his fiancee as soon as he worked up the courage to ask her himself- was expecting a baby; her wishes, he didn't know what they were having. Was it a boy? A girl? They'd find out when the little life came from the oven. A grin is on his face as he imagined his lovely girlfriend walking down the aisle to his awaiting hand.

Then his cellphone played loudly, All Night Long by Demi Lovato. "Hey Chad, what's up?-"

"Gabriella's in labour. High risk." He felt the colour drain from his face.

"She's in labour-she can't be...she's only eight and a half months! Why is she high risk!" He felt the panic coursing through his body. Abandoning his position from stocking shelves, he ran into the break room and grabbed his grey hoodie and black leather jacket; zipping up both, he ran out of the break room and out of the store. He was slightly shocked that no-one stopped him, but then he remembered that it was just opening and he was stocking shelves to get ready for the busiest day of the week.

Monday.

\.

"Ah!" Gabriella sceamed, sweat lining her brow. "Where the fuck is Troy?!" Her eyes are closed tightly, teeth clenched and her body in agony from the contractions.

"Gabriella, you have to push-"

"I am keeping my legs closed until Troy gets here! Where the fuck is he?!"

"Gabriella you have to-"

"Doc," Gabriella hissed through her clenched teeth. "If you say the word 'push'...I will make sure that you are nothing but a bloodspot on the wall behind me. Now, SHUT UP!" The doctor sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose.

"Would you like some painkillers?"

"NO!" Gabriella yelled, "No meds, painkillers...no drugs! My baby is not going to be an addict!"

"All right, but you have to calm down Miss Montez-"

"Don't fucking tell me to calm down-where the fuck is Troy?!"

\.

He ran into the hospital; breathing heavily and not stopping in his tracks when he got off the elevator on the...wrong floor...a few times; all right, six times.

Was this the right floor? What floor was this? "Yo! Troy!" he whipped his head around, seeing his friend; all his curly haired glory; Chad coming toward him. "Room 234...she's been asking for you man." Troy nodded quickly, barely able to control his breathing. He ran down the hall, but Chad caught his arm.

"It's this way." he jabbed his thumb over his shoulder in the other direction.

"Thanks...I got to go..my baby's being born!" he ran down the hall and stopped at the double doors. The ER. Oh...

He picked up the phone on the wall just outside the door, "Troy Bolton for Gabriella Montez." The door opened, he ran in. The receptionist met him instantly with scrubs and a mask.

"This way Mr Bolton."

\.

"Ah!" Gabriella screamed, holding her legs together was beginning to become exhausting. "Where is Troy-"

"Ella!" Troy yelled, Gabriella smiled tiredly. "Troy..." he pressed his lips to hers gently. The doctor coughed.

"If we may interrupt, Miss Montez, you have a baby that WANTS and NEEDS to come out. NOW." Gabriella smiled, grabbing Troy's hand; squeezing tightly. Troy didn't care, he was smoothing the hair from Gabriella's face and wiping the sweat from her brow.

"It's okay...it'll be okay..." The doctor gave the word, and Gabriella let out a loud groan and started pushing for all that it was worth.

Troy squeezed Gabriella's hand while she squeezed his, "You're doing great Ella, you're doing great...a little more-"

"Troy..." Gabriella said, her voice raspy as she gave another push. "Reilly. I chose the name Reilly." Troy smirked, kissing her forehead.

"Ella...focus...come on, focus. Little Reilly -"

"Bolton." Gabriella said, followed by another push. "Reilly Bolton." Troy smiled, wiping her sweat away and moving her hair from her eyes. "Just focus...Reilly is wanting to be part of our world right now." Gabriella smiled, pushing once more.

"Almost there!" The doctor called, "Just a couple more times!"

Gabriella squeezed Troy's hand tighter, her eyes squeezing shut and her top teeth biting hard into her fleshy bottom lip.

"One more!" The doctor yelled, Troy kissed her forehead.

"Make it count, Ella." he whispered, Gabriella nodded tiredly; pushing herself up off her back and letting out a loud...scream. Squeezing Troy's hand and almost breaking all the bones. "Come on.." Troy said, not caring if his hand might be broken.

Suddenly, she flopped back onto the bed with her head on the pillow. And after a five second moment of silence, a baby's cry was heard loud and clear. Troy smiled, lifting his head to see the bundle. Then he turned back to see his love.

The smile fell from his face, "Ella-"

"Take care of her...please...take care of Reilly.." her words were barely audible; barely rolling off the tongue.

"Her?" Troy said, lifting his head to see the bundle. "It's a girl?" The nurse smiled, nodding as she left the room and quickly returned with a pink blanket. He looked at Gabriella again, "Ella-"

"Troy...I love you..and I love Reilly-"

"Gabriella-"

"Mr Bolton." The nurse said, bringing little baby Reilly to him in the blanket. "Would you like to cut the cord?" Everything was just...dissipipating around him; everything but Reilly and Gabriella lying in the bed. Like...he wasn't truly existing as a person, he was just...there. Filling a space until it would be later filled with someone else. "Mr Bolton?"

"Huh?"

"Would you like to cut the cord?" He looked at little Reilly, then at Gabriella who was now lying still in the bed with her eyes peacefully closed. He hoped that she was just resting...but deep in his gut, he knew she wasn't. He nodded wordlessly as he looked up at the nurse again, she handed him a pair of scissors.

And he cut the cord. "Excuse me..." he said, walking slowly from the room.

\.

"So how is she? Boy or girl?" He barely made note of his best friend sitting by him in the waiting room.

"It's a girl...her name's Reilly." His voice sounded blank. Empty.

"Hey man...congratulations. But...you don't sound happy-"

"Happy? Joyous? I was...I am...Can't you see that I'm smiling on the inside?"

"Hoops, you okay man?"

Troy shook his head, tugging hard at his hair from the roots when he dug his hands deep into his scalp. "No. I'm not."

"You were expecting a son-"

"No, I told Gabriella that I'd love our baby no matter what it was."

"Then what's wrong?"

He huffed in a breath, then huffed it back out, turning his head to look at Chad with distraught eyes and swollen cheeks. If there was anything that Chad new about his childhood friend, Troy Bolton barely cried-even when his puppy died in the fourth grade, he didn't cry.

Troy Bolton just...didn't cry. So who was this man who looked and sounded like his best friend..but was weeping like a woman?

"Our baby-heh, Reilly- won't know her mother."

"Troy I'm-"

"I don't know if I can do it Chad...I...raise a baby by myself?"

Chad sighed, clapping a hand on his back. "Hey...it'll be fine. You'll be fine. You'll be a great father-"

"How can you say that? How do you really know?"

"Just...don't do anything rash yet. Take care of Reilly."

Troy nodded slowly, watching his friend stand up and go back to work. Why would anyone want to work in a hospital? There's...there's so much death in a hospital. "Mr Bolton?" He looked up at a nurse; small in stature and an overly friendly face. His baby girl in her arms. "Your daughter..." He stood up, holding out his arms and holding Reilly gently in his arms.

"Congratulations Mr Bolton..and I'm sorry about your wif-"

"Girlfriend. And...thank you for your condolenscences." The nurse nodded, and Troy walked out of the hospital with Reilly in his arms.

He stopped at the reception desk when a pamplet caught his attention, 'adoption'? He looked at it, then he looked at Reilly. Little Reilly.

He grabbed a pamplet.

\.

"Welcome home..." Troy whispered as he carried his daughter in through the door of the small apartment. He sighed, setting the carrier on the table; sitting in the chair in front of her. Reilly cooed, her tiny thumb in her mouth as she twitched her tiny toes. "Your mom...she had a small nursery painted for you; me and her worked hard on it.." he saw a picture of Gabriella smiling, he picked it up and looked at it with sad eyes.

"I miss her..." he whispered, tracing the picture with his finger before he looked up at Reilly, "It's a shame you'll never know her.."

\.

"WAAAAAAAHHH!" Troy groaned, rolling over on his side as he buried his face into the pillow. Trying hard to make the sound go away and not invade his sleep. Reilly was doing well the first month; and now..."WAAAAAAAH!" another wail came to his ears, invading his quiet night time sanctuary.

"Hmm..." he groaned, standing up as he he stretched and walked to Reilly's room. "Hey...Riles," he whispered with a yawn. "What are you doing up at"-he looked on the wall for the clock-"4:30 in the morning?"

"Wah...wah...wah..."

"Sh," Troy shushed quietly, rocking and bouncing her slowly. "What's wrong baby girl?"

"Wa...wah..." he rocked her gently, walking out of the room and toward the kitchen. "Are you hungry?" Holding her in his arms, he got out a small bottle, poured a teaspoon of baby formula in it and put water in the mix before putting it in a pan of water and turning on the stove. Reilly cooed softly, her small face nuzzled in her fathers neck as he was holding her one handed.

"Food is on it's way.." he mumbled, pinching the bridge of his nose tiredly. He bounced his daughter slowly, gently. Gabriella looked forward to this; all nighters with their baby, not being able to sleep after they had gotten their cute, darling little bundle to sleep once more. "Wah.." the soft whimper-wail shook him from the dizzying sad memory, he shushed her quietly, rocking her and turning off the stove and pulling the bottle from the simmering water. He tested it before feeding it to her.

"I miss you, Ella.."

\.

"So how you holding up, hoops?" Chad asked, leaning back on the couch with a mug of coffee in hand. Troy sighed, he was tired; his eyes felt blurry all the time and his body ached.

"I'm fine." He replied to his friends inquiry.

"You sure?" Chad asked, taking a sip of coffee.

"Yes Chad, I'm fine. I'm ...fine."

"Okay..." Chad said, setting his coffee down on Troy's coffee table. "Troy, me ...me and everyone is worried about you."

"No need to be," Troy said harshly, narrowing his eyes. Chad sighed, "I realize that...but when's the only time you leave the house? How long has it been?"

"Reilly needed diapers last week-"

"Who did say 'hello' too?"

"No one I didn't see anyone-"

"MY POINT!" Chad exclaimed, pointing at Troy. His exclamation was followed instantly by Reilly's soft whimper, but no more than that. Nothing for Troy to rush to her crib and cradle her. "You never see anyone anymore!"

Troy sighed, "I'm busy, Chad...I have a daughter-"

"you also have a life. You can have both."

"I promised Gabriella that I'd take care of Reilly-"

"Yes. I get that...but you don't need to give up your life-"

"Chad," Troy said, clenching his teeth. "Just...drop it okay."

"Troy...your parents are worried about you. Hell, I'm worried about you!"

"Chad-"

"You still have a life Troy-"

"NO I DON'T!" Troy yelled, "I DON'T CHAD! MY LIFE WAS TAKEN FROM ME WHEN GABRIELLA DIED!"

"DO YOU THINK THAT I DON'T MISS HER?! I MISS HER TOO!"

"NOT LIKE ME! REILLY DOESN'T HAVE A MOTHER BECAUSE SHE DIED!"

"SO YOUR BLAMING REILLY FOR GABRIELLA'S DEATH?!"

"NO!" Troy yelled, he tilted his head to the side, hearing Reilly's voice growing bigger as a wail was building up. He turned to glare at Chad. "I would never...blame Reilly for anything." He turned to walk into his daughter's room, scooping her out of the crib. "It's okay..it's okay...I'm sorry if you hear me yelling.."

"You know," Chad said in the background, leaning against the door frame. Troy turned with Reilly in his arms. "For someone who picked up an adoption pamplet in the hospital when she was born...you seem to be quite attached to her." Troy narrowed his eyes.

"That's not really any of your business, Chad..." He went around the room, gathering a fresh diaper, a clean onesie, and a thing of baby powder and a blanket to change her on. He had no changing table so he changed her on the floor in the bathroom.

"Troy..come on, we're friends...just be honest; do you want Reilly as your daughter? For real?" Troy laid everything out, then he placed Reilly on the blanket before standing up and glaring at his bushy haired friend.

"It's not your concern. Why don't you ...leave. Now."

"Troy-"

"Leave, Chad. Now." Chad sighed, shaking his head as he stuffed his hands in his pockets. "Fine..I'm leaving, but...answer the question-do you?"

"Leave."

"Fine. Bye, hoops." Troy sighed, scratching at the spot behind his left ear nervously before he turned his full attention to Reilly; staring up at him with her big brown eyes-like her mother.

Troy sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose as he knelt down and began to change Reilly; she gummed her fingers as she stared up at him. He looked at her, then he focused on the diaper, tugging the velcro flaps open. He tugged hard and his phone fell out of the breast pocket of his blue-green plaid lumberjack shirt. He paid no mind to his phone, or the video that had popped on when it had hit the blanket. _"..but her dreams give her wings and she flies to a place where she's loved, concrete angel..." _

Troy looked over his shoulder, seeing a beautiful image of Gabriella in a lavender maternity top; a headband in her hair with a lavender rose in her dark hair. Her eyes are glistening with that spark that he misses and loves. Reilly cooes, reaching for Troy's phone on the floor. Troy smiled, looking at the little girl on the blanket and then picking up his phone to lay next to his daughter to watch the video. "That's mommy.." he whispered. Reilly cooed again, touching the screen. The video changed to another; showing Gabriella wearing a white maternity dress, her hands cradling her belly of seven months. _"Hey baby girl, or boy, I'm your mommy..." _

He remembers the 'Concrete Angel' video, he captured the video himself. But this one..? He didn't remember it...did Gabriella get ahold of his phone? How? Troy always has his phone on him-

"mm..mm..mm..." Reilly cooed, sucking on her whole tiny hand in her mouth. Troy laughed-his first real laugh since Gabriella died. "You look like your mommy.." he said to his baby girl. He sighed, tracing her soft, baby lips with his large finger and then turning his eyes back to the screen. _"I know that daddy's look after babies..but, I know your daddy, and he'll blame himself for what happens to me. So, I hope that you help remind daddy that it's not his fault...that I died. It's not his fault, my fault, or your fault-especially your fault. Things just happen, little one, and I love you both. My love for both of you will always be with you; my love is like a star...even though you can't see me, you know that I'm there." _The video faded to a black screen with a blue circular arrow-playback screen.

Reilly squirmed, reaching her hands up to the phone and trying to take it. Troy stuffed in his breast pocket and picked up Reilly after he threw away the soiled diaper. "Come on, Riles." Reilly squirmed, reaching for his phone.

Troy kissed her forehead, "you want to see mommy again?" Reilly cooed, touching the screen and Gabriella reappeared. "Me too. Let's go watch it in the other room..."

They watched the video for hours, replaying it after it had ended. Troy looked at the time in the top corner of his phone, it was eight thirty in the evening; he looked at Reilly, she was asleep with a bottle hanging from her mouth. He smiled, kissing her forehead and standing from the couch and taking her to the nursery. "Good night...I'll see you in the morning, and mommy is here with you..us; always." Reilly cooed softly in her sleep, hugging the bear that Troy had put in her arms to replace the bottle of milk.

He walked into his room, kicking off his shoes and taking off his shirt with his jeans; flopping on to his bed in his black boxers that say 'Ellen' around the waist band. He ran his hands through his hair and down his face, he closed his eyes as Chad's question from earlier from earlier popped into his head. He rolled onto his side, grabbing the phone that sat on the side table, dialling Chad's number; his friend didn't answer, so he left a voicemail. "To answer your question...yeah, for real, Reilly is my daughter. She belongs with me."

**The End**


End file.
